Sigma • SS182 Kabuki Brush • Makeup Brushes

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*TOP REVIEWER* aprilpinkbeauty on 1/26/2013 9:43:00 PM more reviews by aprilpinkbeauty

Age: 30-35   Skin: Very Oily, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Blue    

At first I loved this brush! It was so soft and a great shaped kabuki brush that I used for buffing in powder and blending out my blush every single day. I've had this for almost 3 years and the shape is completely gone. The bristles are now flared out and are pointy on my face. It sheds when I use it with product (leaving little tiny hairs that are impossible to get off my face), and it sheds 10 times more during a deep cleanse. The last 6 months or so actual clumps of hair come out during washing (please see my picture above). I took very good care of this brush - washing it with baby shampoo & cool water, making sure no water got up inside, and making sure to shape it before laying it to dry. I'm not sure if I got a faulty brush or if the quality of the brushes have changed in the last 3 years but I am very disappointed. I will not be repurchasing this brush and will likely look for another brand kabuki very soon.


Please consider this review if you are thinking about purchasing...everyone is going to love this brush at first but consider how long you are going to get out of it as well. I LOVE Sigma so I am not knocking the brand, I just don't recommend this brush!

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yoyo1227 on 12/21/2011 3:11:00 AM more reviews by yoyo1227

Age: 19-24   Skin: Dry, Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

So I've had this brush for over a year now and although I have read a lot of great reviews and thought it was really soft when I first got it, it has become my least favorite kabuki brush out of the three I have. The other two I have are the MAC 182 (which it is suppose to be a "dupe" for) and a Bobbi Brown kabuki brush that I got at the CCO for $21. The brush is soft but it is not nearly as soft as my Bobbi Brown or MAC kabukis. Furthermore, this brush didn't keep its shape at all. The other two brushes have kept their same general shape but this one has flared out a bunch.
My biggest problem with this brush is that it always sheds onto my face when I use it. And it's not even big hairs, it's a bunch of little tiny hairs. It's as if the hairs are breaking off from the brush itself rather than falling out of the ferrule (does that make sense...???). This means that I cannot use this brush for anything that requires buffing such as mineral foundations or for buffing out colors that are too pigmented (like some blushes). The only thing I can use this brush for with less shedding is to dab on translucent powder which seems silly when I can just go get another Bobbi Brown kabuki for $2 more that can buff, blend, and dab.

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patchworkbee on 10/3/2011 9:20:00 AM more reviews by patchworkbee

Age: 36-43   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Hazel    

- lovely and so soft
- blends well
- dense bristles, just how i like it
- a bit on the small side, but who needs a huge kabuki brush ,-)

would buy it again

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*TOP REVIEWER* faija on 4/2/2011 2:36:00 AM more reviews by faija

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination, Dark, Cool   Hair: Black, Relaxed, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

I bought this because shelling out the money for MAC wasn't feasible at the time. I think I've had it for about 3 months now. I use it to set my foundation and for bronzers. I recently started using for blush after shelling out the money for a hard and scratchy MAC 150 brush that I can't use. I'M SO IN LOVE WITH THIS BRUSH! Im going to order another strictly for blush. I had originally planned on eventually upgrading to all MAC brushes but Why fix something that ain't broken?

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*TOP REVIEWER* JoieDeVlvre on 1/5/2011 12:04:00 AM more reviews by JoieDeVlvre

Age: 25-29   Skin: Other, Medium, Cool   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

Great brush, great price, does it's job perfectly, sheds very minimally (I already washed it a handful of times). It isn't as large or dense (or expensive) as the MAC's Kabuki brush but does the same job buffing in make up nevertheless. Also, I recently watched a video on YT where a girl used this brush to place and buff St. Tropez bronzer mousse all over her body, I tried doing the same and it came out way better, more natural and less messy than using my hands. I really like it, actually for the price I love it.

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*TOP REVIEWER* One1Cherry on 10/23/2010 5:54:00 AM more reviews by One1Cherry

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination, Medium, Warm   Hair: Black, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

I absolutely love this brush for applying my mineral powder foundation. Its dense and soft and rounded, makes applying and buffing my foundation very easy. I also use this to smoothen out my MUFE gel blush after tapping with my fingers.
I wash this every one to two weeks and condition with my hair conditioner. I've had this for about 6 months and its still in good condition, does not shed at all.

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*TOP REVIEWER* sugamonkey on 6/1/2010 11:16:00 PM more reviews by sugamonkey

Age: 30-35   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

Got this because of the MAU reviews and because I didn't want to spend the $$$ for the MAC Kabuki brush. This is the first kabuki I've used so I have nothing to compare it too, but I like it a lot. Very soft and doesn't shed. It does have a slight chemical smell but it doesn't bother me. I use it to apply MAC Mineralize pressed powder-beautiful!

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simpleanddivine on 4/30/2010 7:08:00 AM more reviews by simpleanddivine

Age: 19-24   Skin: Dry, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

As these brushes [Sigma] are meant to be, I compared this to my MAC 182 + 181 Kabuki brushes. And really, they just cannot be duplicated. The bristles feel completely different on my brush, particularly because they were not laser cut in a smooth taper. The edges are rather jagged and scratchy. Such a bummer. This brush also shed. One of the problems that I, personally, have with this company is that they are not consistent. I have some brushes that are very soft, others that are scratchy, some that shed uncontrollably [187] and another 187 that doesn't shed at all. Perhaps Sigma released their brushes too quickly? Hmm... If they hadn't compared themselves to MAC, I think I would feel rather different about them. And because the majority of reviews are positive ones, for this product, I'm thinking maybe I received a dooby. I suppose overall there is a certain amount of chance one takes when ordering his/her sigma brushes. That is kind of unnerving, but they are made by hand, and I know many have had similar experiences with MAC brushes... I just never have.

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prinzcess_ayu on 4/22/2010 9:35:00 AM more reviews by prinzcess_ayu

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

this is my 1st kabuki brush and totally worth it! it is super soft and buffing powder with this brush making my skin look so flawless. the only downside is, it smell like goat and it shed alot..

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fyamaguchi888 on 4/5/2010 11:12:00 PM more reviews by fyamaguchi888

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Black    

I purchased the Sigma Face brush set & ordered this Kabuki brush separately. It was a great decision! It is my favorite Sigma brush.
This brush is incredibly soft!!! It is quite dense & picks up a good amount of my MAC Mineralized Loose foundation. It buffs on easily & feels good on my skin.
It is 3xs cheaper that MAC's 182 & although it is not as big, I feel like it does a good job. It does shed a little when you first get it & when you first wash it, some of the dye washes out with it. But for $16, it is a good deal & now I have the $34 I saved from not purchasing MAC's 182 to spend on something else!! :)

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mickeyrdam on 3/30/2010 10:01:00 AM more reviews by mickeyrdam

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

This is my best kabuki brush (others I possess are Sephora Professional and Jean Paul Gaultier bronzer brush). It is extremely soft and very dense. The body of the brush is more on the pointed side than the wide side, but that's actually good because the brush does not spread to much when pressed against the face. The application of powder products is flawless. The only thing I would object is that it comes with a thin cellophane wrap instead of a firmer plastic one.

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jingabelle on 3/26/2010 3:09:00 PM more reviews by jingabelle

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

the ss182 is SOOOO soft! I use this as my blush brush because it delivers the perfect tint of blush to my cheeks. i also use this with my makeup forever high definition powder- perfect! it's so inexpensive too and i think it's WAY better than mac's! this is definitely a worthy item!

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codyeve on 3/24/2010 11:39:00 AM more reviews by codyeve

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Other, Curly, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

Overall a very good brush. I bought this about a year ago after I lost my MAC 182 Buffer & couldn't afford another. It's very soft & hardly sheds. A very good replacement.

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*TOP REVIEWER* paintingitpink on 11/10/2009 11:39:00 PM more reviews by paintingitpink

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair, Cool   Hair: Blond, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

I can't compare this to the MAC counterpart, because I don't own a MAC one. I've been testing out cheaper and more expensive kabuki brushes, and I've never really liked them. I'm on a make up budget, so I can't buy the MAC one yet. I bought this brush (only the one) off the website, site unseen, based on guru reviews.

I got this in the mail a couple of days ago and I'm totally impressed! It's sooooooooo soft, probably one of the softest brushes I own. I use MAC select sheer loose powder, and it normally takes a lot to build the product on my face. With this brush, I only had to use a small amount to fully set my makeup. It's soft, and really packs the powder on, so I'm actually using way less powder.

The only only con to this brush, is that it kinda smells weird. I washed it with with baby shampoo, and it helped somewhat, but there's still a lingering smell. Hard to describe, but it kinda smells like rotten Noxzema. Washing it helps, but there's some kind of lingering smell. It's by no means overpowering, but the MAC brushes definitely don't smell weird.

Anyways, smell aside, the price point and quality is making me seriously considering buying the brush roll set. I'm really impressed with what I've seen so far.

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*TOP REVIEWER* VVV on 11/9/2009 2:14:00 AM more reviews by VVV

Age: 25-29   Skin: Sensitive, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

This is a really lovely brush. Sigma's SS182 is better than every kabuki brush I have tried to date (except, of course, the MAC 182 which is double the size of the SS182).


THE BRUSH: The bristles of the SS182 are extremely soft while their denseness and length give them just the right amount of firmness and bounce (so the brush isn't floppy). The black handle is short, as in all kabuki brushes, and made of wood. The handle is easy to hold and control, unlike some other kabuki brushes I have tried. This brush shed one hair the first time I washed it and has not shed at all since then.


THE APPLICATION: The SS182 is incredibly soft and wonderfully dense - it feels so silky and glides effortlessly over my skin. The application I get from this brush is flawless - it distributes the perfect amount of product evenly over my skin. The SS182 is a wonder for applying powders (loose & pressed) and blushes. It does an especially nice job applying loose powder products.


BOTTOM LINE: The SS182 is definitely one of Sigma's stronger brushes. The $19 price tag on this brush makes it a steal! I have to take one lippie off because this brush claims to be comparable to MAC's 182. While the SS182 may be comparable in quality of bristles and handle, the MAC brush is simply immense in size and the SS182 is just not that big (it's about half the size of MAC's 182). The SS182 is, however, larger than all of the other kabuki brushes I've tried. I'd highly recommend the Sigma SS182 - it's a really wonderful brush and I reach for it every time I do my makeup.

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